Thursday 1 October 2009 16.34 EDT
First published on Thursday 1 October 2009 16.34 EDT

Portsmouth's owner, Sulaiman al-Fahim, will this weekend make a desperate attempt to attract fresh finance to the club after the chief executive, Peter Storrie, admitted "there is no money left".

The move comes after another turbulent day at Portsmouth on which they were forced to admit that their first-team squad and executive board, including Storrie, had not been paid September's wages. The club rely on Fahim to pay those salaries but the owner has not yet delivered the £50m which he last week promised to provide within a month.

At the weekend Fahim will meet representatives of two Saudi-based businessmen, the Faraj brothers, who were the leading members of the consortium fronted by Storrie which tried to buy the club this summer.

"All the money from all the player transfers and the Sky TV money – all of the £35m from January – has gone straight to the Standard Bank," Storrie said yesterday, referring to Portsmouth's need to pay off a sizeable debt with the South African bank. "There is no money left."

"Whatever we spend on a monthly basis comes channelled through from [Fahim]. He has promised to refinance and he has shown me all the documentation but I have no idea about the conditions of the £50m he says will be arriving in a few weeks. We need to refinance, it is as simple as that. As for the players wages for the last month I would imagine it's a blip and they will be paid."

Fahim's proposed meeting with the Faraj brothers, which is understood to be scheduled for Sunday, appears to strengthen Storrie's position given thathe fronted a consortium led by them which came close to taking over Portsmouth in late August before the then owner, Alexandre Gaydamak, sold to Fahim.

Last night Fahim confirmed he was open to new investors and said he felt "sorry" for the club: "I was always open for any investors if they will add value. No matter who they are." But he hinted the Farajs may have only a short-term interest. "I need people who want to stay with me and the club for the long term."

Storrie said he was working tirelessly to keep the club afloat. "We have been very close to administration a few times in the last nine to 10 months but I am not about to give up now," he said. "I've no idea of the timescale about how long this can go on. I don't want to frighten people. I am sure that if the refinancing that has been promised fails for some reason there will be other people ready to step in."

Fahim said the players and three fellow board members – Storrie, Roberto Avondo and the finance director, Tanya Robins – would get their money today. "The club needs time to be on track," he added. "And this is the worst [period]. By the end of October [we] will see the light and we need everybody's support in these few days. And, the players will be paid."

Pressed over whether there was any chance that he would put the club into administration if this was the best option for Portsmouth in the long term, Fahim seemed to rule this out. "I am always there for the club," he said.

Paul Hart, the embattled Portsmouth manager, said yesterday that Robins had spoken to the players to assure them they would be paid "in the next day or so". "We had a meeting this morning and assured them this would be sorted out," he said. "They turned it into a little bit of fun and have been terrific."

Hermann Hreidarsson, the club's Professional Footballers' Association representative, added he was not overly concerned. "We didn't get paid but someone came down from the payment department and reassured us we will get paid tomorrow , so everyone's a winner," the defender said.

Gordon Taylor, chief executive of the PFA, said his organisation had discussed the situation at Portsmouth but chosen not to intervene because of promises that the players would be paid imminently. "But, of course, this is a very serious matter from our point of view and, if the delay in payments are prolonged or repeated, we would consider intervening and taking action on behalf of our members," he said. "That could involve speaking directly to Portsmouth and seeking guarantees that payments are forthcoming."